Lisa Phillips Fund Raising Page

Over the last two years, I've completed two marathons and raised
$10,000 for The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society (LLS) through its Team in Training
Program. This year, I'm training for The
Philadelphia Marathon. It will be my second Philly
Marathon and my goal is to break the 6 hour mark
and raise at least $3,000.

All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop
leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more
lives. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who
are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our
team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line -
a cure!

During the course of my training and fund raising, I will
introduce you to a friend, Bruce, who was
diagnosed with leukemia 14 years ago. Bruce
underwent chemotherapy and beat the leukemia. His
remission from leukemia lasted until August 2008
when Bruce was diagnosed with another blood disorder,
myelodysplasia. Check back next week to read what
happened next in Bruce's journey.

Please make a donation to support my participation in
Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.
You can do this easily and securely online. If you prefer to write
a check, please make it out to:

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and mail it
to me:

Lisa Phillips 2301 Cherry ST #3C Phila PA 19103

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back
frequently to see my progress and follow Bruce's
story. Thank you for your support!

06/19/09

The photo above is a graphic reminder of what Bruce lives with
on a daily basis. Myelodysplasia is a cancer of
the blood and bone marrow. There are various types of
myelodysplasia and different types of treatments.
Bruce required a bone marrow transplant. The donor was found
through the Bone Marrow Registry. Bruce explained to me that
generally, a donor of the same sex is best. In his case, a male
donor was found. The bone marrow transplant procedure was done in
February.

Life after a bone marrow transplant is not easy. Because of the
risk of infection, Bruce is all but confined to his home. Once a
week, he makes the one and a half hour trip to his doctor for blood
work and respiratory therapy to help prevent pneumonia. Once a
month Bruce receives and IV to help boost his immune system.

While at home, Bruce may receive visitors, but must wear his
mask and gloves. Anyone who has a cold or other illness is not
permitted to visit. Recently Bruce began doing a few hours of work
from home and explained to me that he tires easily.

In the weeks to come, I hope to give you a fuller picture of
what it is like to live with myelodysplasia. In
the meantime, I thank all of those people who have made donations
to date. I've reached the thousand dollar mark but there is still a
long way to go. If you have not made a donation, please consider
doing so. Your donation goes directly towards helping people like
Bruce.

07/08/09

I've finished my first month of training and have logged
85 miles of walking. It's great training again as
it gives one a routine and a set of goals to achieve. My friend
Bruce is not as fortunate as I in that his treatment for
myelodysplasia does not follow a known path with a
specific date for completion. Each day is a small victory over his
disease, but doctors can't say with certainty when Bruce will be
able to live a "normal" life again. It certainly puts things in
perspective when you consider the uncertainty that those living
with blood cancers face every day.

Please help by supporting The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society in its effort to find cures for blood cancers like
myelodysplasia. Every donation is important no
matter the amount. The important thing is to take the first step
and donate what you can. I thank you in advance for supporting me
in my effort to help people like Bruce to make it to the finish
line; the ability to live life to the fullest.

07/14/09

It's Tuesday, which, for some people is just
the day after Monday or the day that comes before Wednesday. For
Bruce, it's the day to travel to his doctor(s) for his weekly
appointment. Some of us might consider the long drive a burden on
top of the burden of fighting myelodysplasia but
that driving time represents one of the few times each week that
Bruce is able to leave his home. Not only that, but once at the
doctor, Bruce has a "second family" made up of doctors, nurses and
the other folks who make things run smoothly who know him well.

The next time your daily commute gets you down, imagine not
being able to make the trip to work each day and consider that your
travel time is an amazing gift.

08/12/09

It's been a month since I updated this page. To date, I've
walked over 220 miles training for the
Philadelphia Marathon. Each step taken gets me closer to reaching
my goal of completing my third marathon in under 6
hours. Thank you to everyone who has made a donation to
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society on my behalf. These funds go
directly towards research to find cures and support for patients
and their families as they fight blood cancers.

If you have not yet made a donation, please do so today. Every
donation regardless of the amount is important and appreciated. As
a well-known athletic shoe maker says "Just do it".

09/01/09

It's September and the temperature has dropped along with the
humidity level. I'm enjoying the cool breezes on my early morning
training walks. My mileage total has climbed to
315, which is like walking to Washington DC and
back! Each weekend, the training focuses on a "long walk". Last
weekend, I walked 14.4 miles in beautiful Peace Valley Park. As the
training progresses, the weekend walks will slowly add mileage with
the longest one at 20 miles. It is believed that
if one can handle the 20 mile walk, one can successfully complete a
full 26.2 mile marathon. I know from experience that this is
true.

Bruce continues to spend his days at home in order to keep
infection at bay. Last week, he had some testing done to assess how
his immune system is doing. The results will be in later this
month. Bruce's hope is that he'll soon be able to return to work.
For Bruce it is a constant waiting game. I admire his patience and
his ever-present optimism.

09/15/09

Good News!

I just learned from Bruce that his recent test results have come
in. His bone marrow test shows that the immune system cells that
his body is producing are primarily from his donor. You may
remember that Bruce received a bone marrow transplant in February
of this year. This is a good thing as it is presumed that these
cells are healthy ones. Because of this as well as Bruce's
continued improvement, his doctors have given him the go-ahead to
start back to work outside of his home for a few hours a day a fews
days a week. He'll need to take precautions to prevent viral
infection and will even be able to go to the movies or a
restaurant. This news is wonderful to know and share with you.

When I started training for this third marathon, I could only
hope that Bruce might be able to leave his home for longer periods
of time by the time the marathon took place in November. That it
has happened so much sooner is a blessing.

Even with this kind of positive news, there are still many other
people who are suffering from one of the many blood cancers that
still exist today. Please consider helping to find cures for
them.

Take the time today to make a donation. You can do so securely
online or make a check out to: The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society and mail it to me at:

2301 Cherry ST #3C Philadelphia PA 19103

09/26/09

It's Sunday afternoon and I've just gotten in from my weekly
training with the team. Today, it rained for most of the
16.6 miles but the walk went well. Thank you to
Rick, who waited through the stops at the restroom and kept me
company over the 4 hours of dodging puddles.

Thank you to those people who have made donations in recent
weeks. I have not yet reached my goal of raising
$3,000 so I ask that if you are reading this and
have not yet made a donation, please consider doing so. The
Leukemia and Lymphoma needs your support to help find cures for
blood cancers and to help the many people fighting for their lives
right now. Every donation no matter the amount is important and
valued.

Thank you!

10/09/09

Thank you to everyone who donated in the last few weeks. I've
reached the $2,500 mark. Training
continues to go well and I now have an 18
mile walk under my belt. Onward to the marathon and my goal
of an under 6 hour time and total
funds raised of $3,000.

10/28/09

Thank you to everyone who donated in the past few weeks. My goal
of raising $3,000 has almost been achieved. I have
walked a total of 580 miles to date. The long
weekend trainings will peak when I walk 20 miles
just two weeks before the full 26.2 mile marathon.
In the meantime, I'm getting used to walking in the rain as that
has been the predominant weather of late.

If you are considering making a donation to help fight blood
cancers, please do not delay. The time is now and the need is
great.